Part 6: Contractual Obligations

Update 05: Contractual Obligations No talking over cutscenes(Polsy) | Talking over cutscenes(Polsy) | Download




Chernobog

A scythe containing souls captured by the god of death Chernobog, who had been expelled to the farthest depths of Inferno.

Rodin infused the scythe with some particularly exquisite souls, restoring the weapon to its former glory.

Those cut by its three giant, creeping blades have their wounds infected by darkness and their souls rot to the bottom of Inferno.




Gravitas

A Dominion in the Second Sphere of angels. The name Gravitas means stern and severe, so this angel is often depicted as steep, uninhabited mountains forever frozen in ice.

His extreme cold has been unpenetrated for eons, and it shows no change through the passage of time. Gravitas awaits silently for an opponent willing to sacrifice everything to face him.




Pain

A powerful tank that would trample angels with bloodstained iron wheels and drag them into a world of nightmares during wars with Paradiso. According to Vigrid legend, Pain's wheels were used for torture, until becoming sentient themselves and reincarnating in Inferno.

Similar to how those of strong faith are said to have rare encounters with angels, humans harboring strong feelings of doubt are more susceptible to finding themselves face-to-face with a demon.

Like his name, Pain is said to feed on the subconscious feelings of injury and hurt in one's soul and will appear anywhere people misguidedly attack each other in an effort to obscure their own sense of loss and loneliness.




City of Water

The Water Capital: that's my name for this town.

Noatun is surrounded by oceans and lakes. The sea provides more than enough for the residents to sustain themselves. The snow from the peak of Fimbulventr melts into a river that flows to the base of the mountain. The river provides drinking water for Noatun's inhabitants, then eventually collects to form a breathtaking lake.

At the lake there is the Cathedral of Cascades, an ancient piece of architecture with a very mystifying presence.

Though some of this ancient building still holds together (including its unique pointed roof), the pathway that once connected the city to the mountain's peak has crumbled to the bottom of the lake.


Underground Graveyard

There is said to be a resting place for the servants of God in the Cathedral of Cascade's submerged underground.

The locals told me of a terrible guardian that prowls the corridors, devouring the soul of any fool who trespasses in that sacred place.

The people of this town must be fed up with me sticking my inquisitive nose where it doesn't belong. Why else would they concoct such a ludicrous tale?

The phrase "servants of God" calls to mind images of ordained prophets passing down divine wisdom. I imagine these disciples also played a part in the shadowy past of the witch and the sage.

I will find clues to the origins of these clans somewhere in this cathedral... I can feel it.

The natives here don't know who they're dealing with. It takes more than a few tired ghost stories to put a damper on the journalistic flame of one Mr. Luka Redgrave.


Trademark

Crests are often used to show the lineage and ancestry of a people.

The Umbra and Lumen also used such crests to represent their clans. The symbols were based on the object of each clan's respective ideology: the moon for the witches and the sun for the sages.

These distinctive symbols, etched upon every Lumen or Umbran object of any importance, make an investigative journalist's job easy. A single glance tells you from which culture an object came from.

The Umbran tombs sealed away by the Lumen are a unique example: with an Umbran seal on the tomb and a Lumen seal on the marker atop it, they bear the motifs of both the sun and the moon.

A crest also exists for Aesir, the God of Chaos. Carvings of this symbol are a familiar sight around Noatun.

Made up of a series of overlapping diamonds, each component is said to represent a single layer in the matrix of time and space that forms our universe.

There is a piece of metal embedded within Aesir's crest that shines with an eerie glow. I've heard it contains some deeper significance, but I am going to need a bit more time to crack this particular chestnut.


Advanced Technology

Sometimes, we discover things from the past we find hard to believe.

I have seen artifacts displaying a level of civilization that could not have existed in the time they are claimed to have been created. Ruins are found built with technology far too advanced for that of their era. Noatun is said to be one such place where this phenomenon occurs. Unsure of what I would find, I decided to investigate the Cathedral of Cascades.

The Cathedral stands in the middle of a lake, requiring me to take a boat to reach it. Its outer walls were in worse condition than I had expected; as debris blocked the entrance, it took a little improvisation to find a way inside. Surprisingly, the Cathedral was in much better condition indoors, and I reached the center of the building in no time. It seemed to be the base of the tower in Noatun that almost scrapes the sky, created to be symbolic of the sacred mountain, Fimbulventr. They say there used to be a path from the top of the tower that connected to the peak of the mountain.

There was this strange sphere-like object sitting on the ground too. Could it have been the ancient elevator I heard the townspeople talking about?

Curiously, there were no wires or anything attached to it. How's it supposed to take people up to the top? I didn't see stairs either, so I assumed it was an elevator... but maybe I was wrong.

Some of the things people come up with, seriously... Whatever that was, I want to figure it out eventually. I snapped a photo, so I'll show it to someone who might know a thing or two about it. Of course, only after I finish the rest of my investigation here.